


Let's Go to the Mall!

by zennie



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Sanvers Secret Santa 2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-30
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-26 08:15:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17138219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zennie/pseuds/zennie
Summary: Aka, chaos in Santa Land. In which Alex is a useless gay and a badass, all in one, Maggie is a mall santa helper elf, and Kara is an annoying yet supportive sister.





	Let's Go to the Mall!

**Author's Note:**

  * For [damndanvers](https://archiveofourown.org/users/damndanvers/gifts).



> For damndanvers: Hope you are having an amazing holiday season. 
> 
> Unbeta’d. All errors my own.

“Ouch!”

The kid careened off Alex’s leg like a rubber ball, stomping on her foot for good measure as he picked up speed. A banshee yell of “Mom, it’s SANTA!” split her eardrums.

A harried woman hurried after, her arms overflowing with bags, and Alex took a quick step back to avoid taking a game console to the knee. She collided with something solid and she whipped around, reaching out by reflex and catching the arm of the person she had run into.

“Shit.” An elf, or rather a woman dressed as an elf, fixed her with an icy glare as liquid dripped from the dark green felt of her costume onto curved slippers. “What the hell?”

For a moment, Alex forgot how to speak. Despite the ridiculous outfit, the woman standing in front of her was beautiful, breathtaking even. Dark hair spilled out from under a red Santa hat, looking so impossibly soft that Alex wanted to run her hands through it to confirm. Honeyed skin contrasted with plastic pointed ears, the color too pale and dead-looking to adorn such a beauty.

The other woman arched an eyebrow as if to say, I’m waiting, and a blush heated Alex’s cheeks as she realized she had been staring for far too long.

“Sorry.” Alex gestured vaguely toward the long line of screaming toddlers waiting for Santa. “Some mom tried to take me out with an Xbox, and I didn’t see you.”

“And you didn’t hear me behind you?” She shook her foot, making the bell affixed to the apex of her shoe jingle.

“Not over this bedlam, or Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer playing at a million decibels.”

Placing her cups on the food court table stacked high with greasy paper plates and fast food containers, the woman grabbed a handful napkins and dabbed at the dark stain that was slowly seeping in. “I guess I can forgive you,” she groused, but she didn’t sound that upset anymore.

“I really am sorry. You okay?”

“Yeah. You’re lucky I had iced chai in that hand and not hot tea, though. That could have ended a lot worse.”

Wincing, Alex grabbed a couple more napkins. The other woman swiped the fresh ones and dropped the sodden mess she was holding into Alex’s hand. “Hey!”

Alex caught a glimpse of an impish smile and a flash of dimples before the woman’s dark hair swept forward to obscure her face. “What? It’s your fault I’m going to be wearing a sticky uniform the rest of my shift.”

“I really am sorry,” Alex repeated as she tossed the handful of napkins into the trash. “I can pay for dry-cleaning or something if you need.”

“I’ll survive, um…” Her head tilted to the side, and she waited with a small, patient smile.

“Oh. You want… I’m, ah...” Get it together, Alex chided herself. Sure, she’s a beautiful woman and she might just be flirting after getting chai dumped all over her, but there was no excuse for forgetting her own name. “I’m Alex. Alex Danvers.”

She stuck her hand out, the one that had recently held wet, sticky napkins, and the woman gave her an ‘Are you kidding me’ look until Alex dropped her hand with a sheepish shrug.

“Maggie. Sawyer.”

“Not Buddy?” Alex wanted to groan as soon as the lame joke left her mouth and Maggie’s eyes narrowed in a glare. “Not the first time you’ve heard that?”

“Not even the first time in ten minutes. The smartass at the Teas Me beat you to it.”

“Damn. Next time, I’ll try to be more original.”

“Next time? You plan on running me over again?”

“Oh no, no, I’m not… I just meant next time we talk or…” A grin peaked out, and Alex realized she was rambling. And that Maggie was teasing. She drew in a breath and let it out slowly. “Do I need to get you another chai?”

Maggie reset the lid and wiped the sides of cup. “Nah, it’s okay. I didn’t end up wearing the whole cup. Besides, if you can’t handle the insanity in the food court, you wouldn’t survive the mob in there. The combination of under-caffeinated parents and sugar-crazed children is no joke.”

Alex shrugged. “I might surprise you.”

“You already have.”

“I—” Whatever Alex was about to say was interrupted by Kara’s excited squeal.

“Alex! You won’t believe what I found for J’onn.” She dashed over to Alex’s side, trying to dig in a bag, and very nearly knocked into Maggie again.

“Careful,” Alex put her arm out to shield Maggie, and Kara pulled up suddenly as she realized Alex wasn’t alone.

“Oh, hi!” Kara looked between the two of them, confusion slowly giving way to a speculative glint in her eyes. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“You’re not.” Maggie hefted her cups. “I have to get back to work.” Her gaze flitted to Alex briefly, and then back to Kara for a long moment before she nodded. “See you around.”

“Yeah, see you around.” Deflated, Alex gave her a small wave and watched as Maggie expertly weaved her way through the throngs of children to disappear behind one of the huge Christmas trees that flanked Santa’s chair.

“Huh.”

Alex swung around to face Kara and her knowing smile. “What?”

“I leave you alone for five minutes, and you start flirting with the first woman you see.”

Huffing out a breath, Alex headed toward one of the few clear tables that afforded a good view of the center of the mall, and not coincidentally, the snaking line of children waiting for their turn with Santa.

Kara settled into the chair across from Alex and stacked her bags on the table. She glanced over her shoulder to follow Alex’s gaze just as Maggie appeared from behind the backdrop. “Do I need to see if you can sit on a certain elf’s lap?”

Alex rolled her eyes at the faux-innocence in Kara’s tone. “I wasn’t flirting. I ran into her, literally, and spilled her drink.”

“That’s one way to get her attention, I guess. Although maybe your technique needs some work.”

“You were gone for way longer than five minutes,” Alex accused, hoping for a change of subject.

Kara’s face brightened. “You have to see what I got for J’onn.” She grabbed one of the bags, pulled out a sweater and held it up. “Where’s the ka-boom? There’s supposed to be an earth-shattering ka-boom,” she quoted in a high voice.

Alex felt the edges of a headache start, and she rubbed at her temples. “Really? You got J’onn a Marvin the Martian Christmas sweater?” She held up a hand when Kara started to launch into an explanation. “We’re not even supposed to be shopping, We’re supposed to be doing recon.”

“What better way to recon than to go in and out of stores and pick a few things up? It’s called blending in. Oh, Sbarro. You want anything?”

“Kara…”

“You can’t expect me to recon on an empty stomach.” With that, she ran off, leaving Alex alone to scout the bustle of the mall. A table of children started singing alone to the lyrics of ‘Here comes Santa Claus,” and Alex’s headache grew three sizes at the sound.

Kara slid in beside her and set a laden tray down. “I got you a slice.”

Alex sighed, but started to eat. Kara eased her glasses down her nose and peered over the top while she ate.

“See anything?”

“No, nothing suspicious. There’s a lot of aliens working and shopping at the mall, and a shape-shifter can appear human, but I didn’t see anyone or anything weird.” Kara pushed her glasses back up. “Your new girlfriend appears to be human.”

“Kara...” Alex groaned.

“She’s the first woman you’ve looked at like that,” Kara waved her hand in Alex’s face as if to explain, “in a looong time. You need to get back up on the horse. Or the girl, as the case may be.”

Kara laughed, but Alex winced at the reminder of her lack of a social life. Her eyes strayed to Maggie as she interacted with the other workers, her wide smile dimpling her cheeks and lighting her eyes.

“Must be the candy-cane striped stockings. Quite the turn-on,” Kara joked before seeing the wistful look in Alex’s eyes. She bumped her shoulder with Alex’s. “Go ask her out.”

“I…” Maggie glanced in their direction, and her smile dropped a little. “She’s working, and I need to do the same.” Alex stood abruptly and adjusted her jacket. “I’m going to go check the employee areas.”

Kara sighed as Alex strode away. “I’ll cover the other half of the mall.”

“Don’t spend an hour in Macy’s,” Alex called over her shoulder.

“Oh, Macy’s!”

  
***

“You’re not supposed to be back here.”

A voice startled her, and Alex swung around in a defensive posture to come face-to-face with Maggie. Because of course she did. “I, um, was looking for the restroom.”

“You missed the restroom signs and walked past all the red ‘Closed to the Public’ warnings?” Sarcasm laced her words. With her arms folded over her chest and dark eyes narrowed in disbelief, Maggie looked like she belonged in an interrogation room.

“Are you a mall cop now?”

“No, but I can get one pretty quickly if you want to explain yourself to them.”

Sighing, Alex slumped a little against the wall. “I was just looking for a little bit of peace and quiet. I have a killer headache, and my sister still has hours of shopping left.” Wrapping the lie in the truth usually helped sell the story, Alex knew, and she needed something convincing. Having J’onn spring her from mall jail was not how she wanted to end her day.

“That was your sister?”

That was not the question Alex had been expecting, and she glanced over at Maggie, who was eyeing her speculatively. “Yeah.”

“You don’t look very much alike.”

“Adoptive sister. Which must be where she gets her excitement for all this Christmas stuff.”

“It can be a bit much, but mall patrons are supposed to stay in authorized areas only.”

“You going turn me in to Security?”

“I should.” Maggie’s stern expression only lasted a moment in the face of Alex’s pout. “But who knows what kind of paperwork I would have to fill out so I guess I can let you go with a warning.” She gestured down the hallway.

Alex took the hint and pushed off the wall, letting Maggie escort her through the beige passageway. She snuck a glance to the side, seeing Maggie’s contemplative frown, like she was trying to piece together a puzzle.

“You must like all this Christmas stuff, huh?” Alex blurted as they neared the end of the hall.

Maggie stopped just shy of the door and turned to face Alex with a crooked half-smile. “What makes you say that?”

“The shoes and the ears and all the…” Alex waved her hand to indicate the costume as her words sputtered to a stop. Kara was right; her technique needed work. A lot of work. But at least Maggie was still smiling at her, and not running away from her lame attempt at humor. That had to count for something, right?

“Not really. It’s just an easy way to make a little bit of extra cash around the holidays.”

“Oh. To get a gift for someone special? Like your... significant other?” Alex guessed as her heart sunk to her stomach.

“Actually, I’m between girlfriends at the moment.”

“You are?” Alex tried but failed to keep the note of excitement out of her voice. “I mean, me. Me too. I’m between girlfriends too.”

Maggie chuckled and shook her head, and Alex caught a subtle whiff of pine and cinnamon. She leaned a little closer and took a deep breath. Now or never.

“So, um—”

“I have to—” Maggie waved her hand to indicate the rest of the mall.

“You have to work.” Alex winced. “I’m sorry, I keep interrupting you. I guess I’ll just…” Alex took a step closer to the door before turning back. “Thanks for not turning me in. I… uh, owe you one.”

“Two. You owe me two,” Maggie corrected her as she swung open the door and ushered Alex into the corridor. “Just try to stay out of trouble, okay?”

“Yeah, I, I will.”

Rejoining the mass of people did nothing to improve her mood, and Alex glanced at her phone and headed back toward the food court. Just one more hour before she could swap out with another agent. It was going to be a long one.

“Alex!” Kara caught her arm. “Where were you?”

“Getting busted by an elf.”

“I don’t know what that means.” Just then, Maggie walked by, carrying a large bag of toys over her shoulder, and Kara grinned. “Oh, I see.”

Alex rolled her eyes. “It’s not like… whatever you’re thinking.”

“That’s too bad.” Kara linked her arm with Alex and they barrelled their way through the crowd. One guy tried to elbow his way past, connecting with Kara with a sharp cry of pain. “Watch where you are going next time,” she told him sweetly before turning her attention back to her sister. “Look, Alex, I know I’m pushing kinda hard, but you should ask her out. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“I dunno, she could turn me down and I will have made a fool of myself for nothing?”

“Psssh, you never know until you try.” Kara diverted to a sitting area by a fountain and gave Alex a nudge. “Go for it.”

Alex glanced nervously at Maggie, who was corralling children and their parents out of the way of the mall foot traffic. If she left without asking, she would be plagued by the what-ifs for the rest of the night. “Okay, but if this doesn’t work out, you are buying all the ice cream. And I mean, all the ice cream.”

“Deal,” Kara said with a smile and shooing motion of her hands.

“Hey, uh, Maggie? Do you have a minute?”

Maggie glared as a group of teenagers tried to cut in line before gesturing for Alex to walk with her. “Only a minute. This is the busiest time at Santa’s Winter Wonderland and it’s all elves on deck.” She chuckled at her joke before turning to face Alex. “What do you need?”

“I just… I was wondering if… after the holidays, or maybe New Year’s Eve, my sister is throwing a party, and well, would you…” Movement caught the corner of Alex’s eye, and her ramble cut off abruptly. “Should he be up there?”

One of the elves was perched on the edge of the backdrop, a maniacal grin on his face, watching the people pass by like a bizarre caricature of an elf on the shelf.

“What the…?” Maggie muttered just as he twisted and morphed, his skin slowly turning green and his elf costume transforming into a bright red Santa suit trimmed with fur.

“I’ve been making my list and checking it twice,” he snarled over the screams of frightened children, “finding out who’s been naughty or nice.” He raised to his full height, reached into a red felt bag, and retrieved a black lump of what looked like coal. “I’ve found all of you have been naughty!” He lobbed the substance in his hand at the mall Santa, and the explosion of the nutcracker that flanked his chair unleashed pandemonium.

“Watch out!” Maggie swung around and tackled Alex as he threw another bomb, the momentum sending them both to the ground.

Which is how Alex found herself laying on her back with Maggie sprawled on top of her, panting, one elf ear missing and her Santa hat askew. In another context, their relative positions might have suggested a whole other activity, and Alex had to wrench her thoughts away from the images that flooded her mind.

“Where…?” Maggie’s question was cut short by another explosion, and Alex watched in horror as the two-story Christmas tree splintered and fell.

Alex caught Maggie in a bear hug and rolled over, offering her own body in sacrifice, but a gust of air and a flash of red and blue signalled the arrival of Supergirl, swooping into catch the trunk in the nick of time.

A relative moment of quiet enveloped them, broken only by their harsh breathing. Maggie’s hands brushed over Alex’s back, comforting, reassuring. “That was close. You okay?”

“Yeah. You?”

“You do that hero stuff often?”

Alex shrugged a shoulder and pushed herself up, her eyes sweeping the area as she extended a hand to Maggie. “Now we need to—”

A faint whistle was the only warning they had. Alex pushed Maggie away from her and into the relative safety of the downed tree. The bomb exploded and sent her crashing into the fountain. Her ears were ringing and she blinked to clear the smoke from her eyes, but at least Maggie was nowhere to be seen.

Footsteps and a quiet litany, ‘naughty, naughty, naughty,’ warned her that the alien was approaching. She staggered up and grabbed firearm out of the waistband of her jeans.

“Naughty little girl.”

“The Grinch, I presume?”

A cackle of otherworldly laughter sounded as he threw another lump of coal, and Alex dodged, sliding on floor made smooth by the steps of untold feet. The explosion rattled her teeth in her head and debris rained down on her, but this time, she managed to avoid the worst of it.

The alien raised his arm for another throw, but staggered as a shotgun blast caught him in the back, and the explosive fell into the fountain. A wave of water drenched the alien and Alex’s savior, Maggie, cocking the gun for another shot.

The alien scurried off, and Maggie paused long enough to yank Alex to her feet before heading in pursuit, with Alex on her heels. Alex could only imagine the picture they painted, one of Santa’s elves chasing the Grinch around a wrecked Christmas tree with a shotgun.

A blast of heat vision seared the floor. The alien pulled up short, and Maggie, struggling for traction with her absurd elf shoes, slipped on the wet floor and took his legs out from under him. They ended up in a heap on the floor, and Alex jumped into the fray, grabbing the alien by the scruff of the neck to haul him off of Maggie.

“I got him.” Supergirl waded into the tangle of bodies and extracted the alien. He stopped fighting once they left ground, and when she deposited him in the middle of a squad of DEO agents, he surrendered almost meekly.

“Maggie?” Kneeling, Alex brushed Maggie’s hair back from her face.

“Note to self: elf costumes are not rated for combat,” Maggie groaned as she blinked open her eyes and sat up. Alex slid her arm around her shoulders to steady her as she got her feet under her. “I’m okay.”

“You sure? You went down hard.”

“No harder than you bouncing off that fountain.” Maggie’s tone was faintly accusing, underscored by concern.

Supergirl landed beside them, the small gust of wind stirring the dust around them. “You know, I’m starting to think she’s not really an elf after all.”

“The shotgun gave me away, huh?”

“I doubt they come standard issue in Santa’s workshop,” Alex chimed in. “Let me guess, NCPD? Working undercover because of a threat against the mall?”

“And I’m guessing the DEO got the same intel, huh?”

Smirking, Alex stepped into her space. “I can neither confirm nor deny my involvement with an extrajudicial governmental agency that may or may not exist.”

Maggie tilted her head to the side with a matching smirk. “You don’t need to, Agent Danvers. I’ve known about your little agency for some time.”

“Oh, get a room already,” muttered Supergirl under her breath.

Alex didn’t look away from Maggie as she commanded, “You can go now, Supergirl. I have this.”

With one final roll of her eyes, Supergirl launched into the air.

“You order Supergirl around? That’s kinda hot.”

Schooling her expression, Alex pretended she didn’t hear the last comment. She could squee over it later with Kara, after all. “So, officer—”

“Detective,” Maggie corrected smoothly. “NCPD Science Division. We handle all cases that involve aliens and things that go bump in the night.”

“Things that go bump in the night, huh?”

Maggie’s lips curled into a knowing smile. “That’s right. You know, it’s a good thing you’re one of the good guys. Staking out the mall is a much better look than a grown woman loitering around food court all day, watching kids line up to see Santa.”

“You seriously thought I was a suspect?”

“Either that, or you have a thing for elves.”

Shaking her head, Alex leaned in to whisper, “Not elves, but maybe one elf in particular.”

Maggie shivered as Alex’s breath ghosted over her skin. “Yeah?”

“I wasn’t exactly subtle, was I?”

Maggie let out a snort of laughter. “No, you really weren’t. Now before we were so rudely interrupted by a bomb-throwing alien, I think you were about to ask me something?”

“Oh yeah.” Nerves welled up, and Alex caught her lip in her teeth. “I was wondering if you wanted to go get a drink with me. You know, after you are done with your shift at the mall.”

They were close, so close they were almost touching. Maggie hitched her chin up and moistened her lips with her tongue. “I think that can be arranged. Might have to clean up a little bit, lose the ears.”

“Keep the hat,” Alex suggested.

“What?” Maggie pulled back, startled, her eyebrows knitting until she saw Alex’s teasing grin. “You almost had me.”

“8 o’clock? Scotch & Spirits?”

“It’s a date.”

Maggie glanced at Alex’s lips before slowly easing back to give them breathing room, and Alex instantly regretted not going in for a kiss.

A quiet flutter drew both of their eyes upward.

“Is that Supergirl flying above us with a sprig of mistletoe?”

Alex squeezed her eyes shut. “No?”

Soft lips brushed hers, and Alex’s breath hitched. Her fingers tangled in the soft felt of the elf costume, holding Maggie there for an immeasurable moment.

“I’ll see you tonight,” Maggie promised as they parted. She gave a small wave as she walked away, the bells on her shoes jingling with every step.

“Tonight,” Alex agreed with a happy sigh.

A second later, Supergirl settled beside her and nudged her with a shoulder. “It’s the candy-cane stripes, isn’t it?”

Alex swatted her arm, muttering an annoyed ‘ouch.’’ “You are so lucky I love you.”


End file.
